6 pm: Benefit

The Fifth Annual Make-A-Wish Foundation Wine-Tasting and Auction includes drink from vintners Clos Du Bois, Stag’s Leap, Clos Du Val, Grgich Hills and Veuve Clicquot and food from restaurants Le Colonial, Chaya Brasserie, Citrus, Coco Pazzo and McCormick and Schmick’s. Also on deck are silent and live auctions featuring trips, celebrity memorabilia, rare wines and other unique items, including a ride on John Travolta’s private jet and a Richard Petty Driving School stock car racing lesson package.

* Fifth Annual Make-A-Wish Foundation Wine-Tasting and Auction, Barker Hangar, Santa Monica Airport. Wine and food tastings and silent auction at 6 p.m.; live auction, 9 p.m. $60 in advance; $70 at the door. (800) 322-WISH.

8 pm: Pop Music

The benefit concert titled “It’s Gonna Take a Lotta Love . . . “ is more than a tribute to singer Nicolette Larson, who died in December at age 45. It’s a resurrection of the ‘70s Southern California singer-songwriter community, which in its prime frequently gathered for social and personal causes. On hand these two nights are Crosby, Stills & Nash; Linda Ronstadt; Bonnie Raitt, with Little Feat; Joe Walsh; Jackson Browne; the Section; and Emmylou Harris, along with affiliated artists Carole King, Dan Fogelberg and (on Saturday only) Jimmy Buffett. Proceeds will go toward UCLA Children’s Hospital and a special pediatric endowment fund.

* “It’s Gonna Take a Lotta Love . . . “ at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, 1855 Main St. $40. (310) 458-8551, (310) 374-4837. Also Saturday.

all day: Festival

The 38th Annual Hillcrest Festival of Fine Arts is a weekend full of family activities, with artists’ demonstrations, performing musicians, children’s art projects, storytelling and a performance by the Oregon Shakespeare Festival Players. More than 200 artists will exhibit their work for sale, including featured artist and illustrator Joel Nakamura, whose images have appeared everywhere from billboards to album jackets to the cover of Rolling Stone magazine.

* 38th Annual Hillcrest Festival of Fine Arts, 2000 West Road (north on Santa Gertrudes, on the border of Whittier and La Habra Heights). Friday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sunday, 11:30 a.m.-4 p.m. Free. (562) 947-3755.

7:30 pm: Family

Rock ‘n’ roll the night away on your in-line skates or old-fashioned skates at Family Skate Night, sponsored by the Torrance Parks and Recreation Department. Bring your own equipment or rent from a limited number of skates, helmets and wrist guards available for a nominal fee.

* Family Skate Night, Wilson Park, 2200 Crenshaw Blvd., at Jefferson, Torrance. 7:30-9:30 p.m. Free. (310) 618-2930.

8 pm: Theater

Meredith Willson’s venerable bit of Americana, “The Music Man,” kicks off Musical Theatre West’s 45th anniversary season. Squire Fridell plays fast-talking salesman Harold Hill.

* “The Music Man,” La Mirada Theatre, 14900 La Mirada Blvd., La Mirada. Friday-Saturday, also Feb. 26-28, March 5-7, 8 p.m.; Sunday, also Feb. 28, March 1, 7-8, 2:30 p.m. $18-$32. Also at the Carpenter Performing Arts Center, Cal State Long Beach: March 14, 8 p.m.; March 15, 2 p.m. $25-$35. (714) 521-4849; (888) 554-6874.

8 pm: Theater

“Chili Queen,” a dark comedy exploring the mass media’s obsession with sensationalism, by Emmy and Peabody Award-winning newsman Jim Lehrer (“PBS NewsHour”), has its West Coast premiere. It’s about how the media manipulate a dispute over change for a $20 bill at a chili burger joint into a major national news event.

* “Chili Queen,” Coronet Theatre, 366 N. La Cienega Blvd., Los Angeles. Regular schedule: Wednesdays-Saturdays, 8 p.m.; Saturdays-Sundays, 2 p.m. Ends March 15. $25-$35. (213) 365-3500; (310) 657-7377.

FREEBIE: “PXL This Seven” video festival, Vidiots, 302 Pico Blvd., Santa Monica, 8 p.m. (310) 392-8508.